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Brilliant Hong Kong electronics maker Brando has come up with a new gadget for the spying car guy, a fake key fob with a built in spy camera. It's even got an SD slot for extended observation. More »
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A Cambridge, Ontario man has managed to injure himself in a most unusual way: with his remote starter. The 32-year-old was going from car to store when he accidentally tapped the "start" button instead of the "lock" button on his key fob. His vehicle came to life, and, being a manual in first gear, pinned him against the van he was parked behind. While the man sustained only minor injuries to his legs and back, we imagine he's just aboot dying of embarrassment. More »
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Delphi, makers of all kinds of vehicle electronic gadgetry, will become the first manufacturer to use what is being called "segmented display cell." SDC is a type of e-ink used in electronics and will soon be implemented into a wireless bi-directional keyfob. SDC will make integrating displays into keyfobs a little more reasonable. SDC also looks a hell of a lot better than the third-party jobbers with displays that look like those handheld videogames from the 1990s. This technology isn't just about looks, either. More »
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Ever wonder how all the remote openers in the world don't set each other off on a regular basis? It all has to do with the mysterious KeeLoq security system, made by Microchip Technology. The system is used by quite a few automakers in their remote keyfobs and in garage door openers to keep things secure. Well, the rascally Germans at Ruhr University decided to figure out how it works, and along the way they developed a way to duplicate those codes. Whoops. When reached for comment, MT relied on a canned statement saying "These theoretical attacks are not unique to the KeeLoq system and could be applied to virtually any security system." Hopefully you've got backup locks for your stuff. [SundayHerald] More »
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Through the marvel of two-way radio frequency communication, the General's now got a brand new toy coming your way. It's a — wait for it — hell, give it a drum-roll — key fob! And if we're to believe the hype, it promises to revolutionize your pocket through a breakthrough in miniaturization of both size and costs. For the wee fee of only $150, this new key chain attachment finally puts key information drivers need to know at all times right at their fingertips — and from the comfort of their home or place of work via a crisp little Tamagotchi-like screen on the front of the fob. So that means it's the answer to all of our prayers — no more sleepless nights worrying if your car's tires are properly inflated — it's right there on your key fob. No more... More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=215062&view=rss&microfeed=true Despite the fact that we know there's only so many signals our key fobs can use to transmit codes to our car for commands like "lock", "unlock" and "alarm", we're still kind of weirded out when we encounter through random chance, a vehicle sharing said signal. We guess we shouldn't be too surprised because as we were once told, after an overanxious valet locked the RFID key fob in the trunk of the Corvette it belonged to, that "there's only about fifty or so combinations between the keys and this specific vehicle." Plus, given Mitsubishi and DaimlerChrysler once had a "sharing is caring" relationship, we're under the assumption that maybe our fob shared some kind of doohickey or something with the Montero sitting next to our car. Still, what the hell are the odds of this happening? – Ray Wert More »
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First...man created car keys, and the automotive gods looked down and saw it was simple and it was good. Second...there was a desire by many to open up their cars from long distances without the dirtiness of twisting a key in a door handle, and the key fob was created. The automotive gods looked down and saw that while not simple, this too was good. Third...there grew a desire in man to have more features and "innovation" on the key fob to allow opening and starting of all manner of things, and man created the advanced key fob. The automotive gods looked down questioningly, but in the end decided this too could be good. Fourth, and finally...man desired to make the key fob part of the key. The automotive gods looked down and decided to punish man for his ignorance, saying "dude, when you lose that in your couch cushions, we're gonna make it cost like, 250 bucks to replace that little piece of crap." And the automakers looked over and saw it was good. More »
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In some circles a "Bulgarian key fob" is probably a perverse double entendre, in others, it's merely a key fob that fires bullets. Police in the UK (Manchester, mostly) have been uncovering and seizing numbers of tiny twin-shooters, sold legally as in Bulgaria as flare pistols, but converted to fire live ammo. The guns came to public consciousness in the UK after a 19-year-old man accidently shot himself in the head while trying to show friends at a nightclub how its safety lock operated (die, brutal irony, die). Police say posession of the fob carries the same sentence as that of a traditional firearm, five years. [Thanks to RD for the tip.] More »
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